Nuclear Explosions & Seismology

On January 19, 1968, a thermonuclear test, codenamed Faultless, took place in the Central Nevada Supplemental Test Area. The codename turned out to be a poor choice of words because a fresh fault rupture some 1200 meters long was produced.

Both earthquakes and nuclear tests can rapidly release a large amount of energy. The energy source for small yield (typically less than 50 kilotons) thermonuclear devices is the splitting of heavy radioactive isotopes.

No. Even huge amounts of explosive almost never cause even small earthquakes (see previous FAQ), and it would take hundreds and thousands of small earthquakes to equal a large one, even if it could be done.

On September 10, 1996, the United Nations General Assembly voted 158-3 to approve a treaty prohibiting all nuclear tests. The Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty has been signed by 130 nations - including the United States.

Seismology is one of several fields which plays a role in monitoring the CTBT. Underground nuclear explosions produce seismic waves with unique characteristics which allow the discrimination between explosions and earthquakes.

Popular Media

What is the National Map?

- The National Map is a framework for geographic knowledge needed by the Nation. It provides public access to consistent, high quality, geospatial data and information from multiple partners to help inform decision making by resource managers and the public.

- Mount St. Helens and surrounding area recover from the historic May 1980 eruption. Shades of white and gray indicate still-bare slopes that were swept by volcanic flows; light green areas at the top of the photo show regrowth of vegetation in devastated areas; dark green areas at the bottom were unaffected by the eruption.

- View of Bryce Canyon National Park from Rainbow Point. In the foreground are sandstone hoodoos and in the background is the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, which is managed by the Bureau of Land Management.
Bryce Canyon is a unique sandstone formation in southern Utah. It is home to a large number of hoodoos, which are oddly shaped pillars of rock that formed due to different erosion rates for the dolomite that caps them and the sandstone that forms their base.
Bryce Canyon is also home to large numbers of cedar trees that spread throughout the canyon.